A Look at Entertainment

by T.J. Moore

Rumors swirled around for months that Berry and Martinez, her husband for two years, were headed for a split.

“It is with a heavy heart that we have come to the decision to divorce;” the couple said in a joint release. “We move forward with love and respect for one another and the shared focus for what is best for our son. We wish each other nothing but happiness in life, and we hope that you respect our, and most importantly our children’s privacy, as we go through this difficult period.”

According to TMZ, Berry’s divorce petition almost went under the radar because the actress didn’t use her real name. TMZ obtained the documents on Oct. 26, one day before Martinez filed his own petition. Berry gives her name as Hal Maria. Hal is short for Halle and Maria is her middle name. Martinez is listed on the document as Oliver Martin. It’s unclear if filing under an alias is legal, and a judge may have to decide if Berry’s petition is legit or if Martinez is the actual petitioner.

Kerry Washington

Katie Lowes

Scandal’s Kerry Washington and Katie Lowes are joining forces for a new television series with ABC. But this time, the two actresses are stepping behind the camera as producers.

According to Variety, the untitled dramedy is described as an edgy and comical upstairs-downstairs look at the insanity of modern child-rearing, focusing on a group of nannies, a trio of interconnected families, and their various support staffs, all trying to help the kids grow up while they haven’t yet quite grown up themselves. Bess Wohl will write the script and also serve as an executive producer on the potential series along with Washington and Lowes, Shonda Rhimes, Betsy Beers and Adam Shapiro.

NeNe Leakes

NeNe Leakes just couldn’t stay away. Four months after the Real Housewives of Atlanta star announced that she was leaving the show, E! news has learned that she will make a surprise return for the show’s eighth season.

RHOA just recently wrapped up filming Season 8’s trip to Jamaica, and Leakes will make an unannounced appearance, much to the surprise of her unsuspecting co-stars, according to sources close to production. The trip isn’t the only appearance for Leakes. She will make an undetermined number of appearances.

The new season is set to premiere November 8 at 8 p.m. on Bravo.

Janet Jackson

Janet Jackson’s Unbreakable tour has been postponed. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nominee said that she would postpone a portion of her tour to give her pipes some rest.

Jackson’s vocal issues wasn’t the only bump in the road for the tour. According to Rolling Stone, fans were upset when their Instagram accounts were suspended or had content removed after posting concert footage after a “third party reported that the content violates their copyright.” Instagram claimed that a “bug” was to blame for the accounts, which have since been restored, although “repeat infringers” were deleted.

The tour’s makeup dates have yet to be announced.

Misty Copland

Misty Copland, who broke barriers to emerge as a superstar ballerina, has teamed with screenwriter Tracy Oliver for a drama set in the dance world.

According to Deadline, the untitled project has been set up at Fox through 20th Century Fox TV, and it follows a young and diverse group of aspiring dancers as the fiercely compete for places in a top ballet company.

Oliver became fascinated by Copeland and her story after reading an article about the dancer two years ago. Oliver knew she wanted to collaborate with Copeland in some way, and she eventually cold-called and pitched herself and the idea of doing a TV project together to Copeland and her manager Gilda Squire.

Oliver has quite the resume early in her career. She first got noticed with the Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl webseries, which she co-wrote and executive produced with Isa Rae.